Advertising and Promotion Report: Westfield-Stratford City Strategies

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of advertising and promotion strategies, focusing on the challenges faced by Westfield-Stratford City. It begins by exploring the communication process, emphasizing its importance in organizational functioning. The report then delves into the advertising and promotion industry, its historical evolution, and its current structure, including the roles of various participants like advertisers, agencies, and media organizations. It also examines the regulations governing promotion in the UK, highlighting key legislation and codes of conduct. Furthermore, the report analyzes current trends in the industry, such as QR codes and social marketing, and assesses the impact of Information Communication Technology (ICT). The role of advertising in integrated promotional strategies is discussed, emphasizing its importance in reaching customers and developing a positive brand image. Finally, the report addresses the significance of branding in strengthening a business, outlining key stages for effective branding. The report includes an appendix with a one-page flyer and a Gantt chart time frame for a promotional plan.

Advertising and Promotion

Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................................3
Task 1.........................................................................................................................................................3
LO 1.1 Communication process.......................................................................................................3
LO 1.2 Explanation of organization in advertising and promotion industry....................................3
LO 1.3 Regulation of promotion in the UK......................................................................................5
LO 1.4 Current trends in advertising and promotion industry; and impact of ICT..........................6
LO 2.1 Role of advertising in integrated promotional strategy........................................................7
LO 2.2 Using branding to strengthen the business...........................................................................7
LO 2.3 Creative aspects of advertising.............................................................................................8
LO 2.4 Ways of working with advertising agencies.........................................................................8
M1..............................................................................................................................................................9
D3. One page flayer of Westfield complex and its most popular stores...........................................9
D2. Time Frame for Promotional plan (Gantt chart)........................................................................9
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................9
References................................................................................................................................................10
APPENDIX 1...........................................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Advertising and promotion form some very important aspects of working of business
organizations. They are a tool through which target customers can be attracted as well as steps can be
taken so as to retain them with the company (Pechmann and et. al, 2005). The present report is
developed with an objective to suggest different advertising and promotional strategies to board of
Westfield-Stratford City, so that a downward spiral trend of falling sales in the shopping complex can
be stopped. The report evaluates the communication process, different rules and regulations that govern
the aspect of advertising and promotion. In addition, it also assess the impact of ICT, branding and the
role played by integrated strategies in advertising and promotion.
TASK 1
LO 1.1 Communication process
Communication is an essential part of working of firms, regardless of market that they may be a
part of, as it helps in conducting different organizational functions in an efficient and effective manner
(Barbeau, 2005). Thus it is imperative that steps be taken to develop a proper communication
framework as it would enable the firm to achieve its goals and objectives and also be able to maintain
its market position. According to nature of operations of the company as well as the situation that it is
stuck in, it can be suggested that the basic communication process must be used at the workplace. This
will help in ensuring an optimal flow of knowledge and information in company and also that everyone
is able to interact with one another efficiently and effectively. In this process there are seven
components (Donohue, Cevasco and Rosenthal, 2007). One of them is the sender. He is an individual
who has the need to communicate about some or the other matter of organizational functioning. In the
next stage, such message(s) is encoded. This way it can be ensured that information is not accessed by
any unauthorised person. Once the message is encoded, it has to be send to intended audience(s)
through different mediums, which is also the next stage of this process (Kotler and Armstrong, 2014).
In the next stage message is decoded, i.e. is decrypted so that it can be accessed and easily understood
by the receiver. Through this technique it can be ensured that the message is not interpreted in any
manner other than what the sender had attempted it to be. In the next stage message is delivered to the
recipient. This means that it has been received. While in the last step, receiver gives feedback to sender
that they have received the message and have understood it the way it was intended to be (Hackley,
2005).
LO 1.2 Explanation of organization in advertising and promotion industry
Over the years, advertising and promotion has consistently been a very important part of the

marketing process, mainly because of reason that they have been very helpful to companies, as they
have attained large amount of successes (Samuels, 2011). Advertising and promotions have a very long
history, as techniques of it were first used in Indian Rock artists in 4000 B.C. where it was used as a
tool to promote different kinds products. After this the Chinese started the concept of advertising
through oral methods, i.e. word of mouth publicity. They used this technique to sell products such as
flutes and such other musical instruments (Steenkamp and et. al, 2005). It was after this period only
that substantial developments started to take place in advertising and promotions industry. Before the
use of technological tools in this process, such as online and digital mediums, print media was the most
popular ones, as companies used to advertise and promote themselves in different newspapers,
magazines, etc. (Guffey and Loewy, 2012). These methods were popular among both customers and
business organizations. Today a lot of developments have happened in this sector, as companies now
use internet and other such technological tools to market their products and services on a regular basis.
In this context it can be said that the advertising and promotion industry is organized in such a manner
that it might help companies to attract customers in large numbers, alongside retaining them as well.
Furthermore, this industry works in order to develop a unique and positive image of enterprise in the
market, with the help of which it can function more easily and effectively in the market ( Goldberg,
Davis and O’Keefe, 2006).
Structure of the advertising industry is showing in below figure. Explanation of each
participants in advertising industry is as follows.

Participants in advertising industry Explanation
Advertisers Group of people, organization or government which are
want to address the target customers by advertising .
Advertising and promotion agencies There are ads and promotion service facilities providers to
the advertisers and can be categorised into two different
segments: advertising agencies and promotion agencies.
External facilitators These are delivering supportive or additional facilities to the
advertising agencies in terms of consultancy.
Media organizations: These are the communication medium for the advertisers by
which they can share their message to the audience.
Target audience household consumers, government organizations, business
and professionals

LO 1.3 Regulation of promotion in the UK
Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is a that has developed and implemented different kinds
of rules, regulations and laws relating to how the advertisement and promotions industry operates in the
market. Herein marketers have to make sure that their marketing campaigns are as per such regulations,
as their non-compliance can lead to bad results for the promotion and produce non-effective and non-
useful results to the firm (Koehler, 2015). Furthermore this body also develops different standards in
relation of aspect of advertising and promotion. These standards have to be followed so as to ensure
that this process is both legal as well as ethical to related individuals and bodies.
In UK, advertising and promotions is one of the sectors which is highly regulated and governed
by a lot man rules and regulations. For companies that indulge into such activities and tasks it is
imperative that they follow the norms laid down by UK Advertising Codes (Sriram and Kalwani,
2007). It states that marketers must not release any misleading and false advertisements or promotions
in the market; and if they do so, whether intentionally or intentionally, then they are punishable and a
case can be filed against them. This code of conduct basically can be applied to advertisements in
newspapers or any other such medium along with cinema, video, DVD advertisement and promotions.
But on the other hand, this code cannot be applied to that of broadcast media and broadcast
advertisements and promotions (Fill, Hughes and Francesco, 2013).
Regulation in promotion Explanation
Consumer protection from unfair
trading regulation, 2008 (CPRs)
Prohibited unfair commercial practices and ban misleading and
aggressive practices of ads and campaigning.
Sales of goods act 1979 Quality of the sold goods should be according to the set
standards and fulfil the purpose for which it has developed.
Supply of goods and services act
1982
Users can expect services with the goods during the buying of
commodities.
LO 1.4 Current trends in advertising and promotion industry; and impact of ICT
The advertising and promotions industry is one of the most volatile and unpredictable
marketplaces, as changes happen here very fast and very frequently as well. In order to be able to
properly use such tools and methods, it is very important that current trends in the market must be
analysed and evaluated thoroughly (Rossiter and Bellman, 2005). This way the industry can function
effectively and the said tools can be used properly for efficiently conducting different marketing

activities.
QR codes: One of them is that of emergence and rise in popularity of ‘QR’ (quick response) codes.
They are a form of two dimensional symbols. It is a digital code which is scanned and read by a QR
Code Reader. Today it is a very popular method of advertising and promotions as it is very extensively
used by companies across the country (McDonough, 2009). The main reason behind its extensive use is
that it is a rage among the young generations, as they can get access to a plenty of data and information
by scanning the code, the reader of which it is usually installed in their smart phones.
Social marketing: Apart from this, online advertising is also another very popular method in the
industry. Companies advertise and promote their offerings through different social media mediums
such as social networking sites, email marketing, etc. (Gurau, 2008).
ICT (Information Communication Technology) is an aspect which has a significant impact over
the advertising and promotions industry. It can be supported through fact that now companied have to
integrate deliver information to concerned people through the use of different technologies. If they are
not used properly and in an effective manner, then it can be said that the process of advertising and
promotion can be carried out easily (Clow, 2007). Herein the management at Westfield-Stratford City
would have to ensure that ICT tools and advertising and promotional tools are integrated with one
another to ensure that organizational goals and objectives are met easily and effectively.
LO 2.1 Role of advertising in integrated promotional strategy
Today the role of advertising in different promotional strategies is critical. This is mainly
because of reason that it helps management in understanding demands of target customers and also aid
in process of development of methods through which the same can be fulfilled. It can be supported by
stating that the cited organization can much easily and effectively carry out the process of promoting its
goods through help of various advertising tools (Walker, Sartore and Taylor, 2009). In this sense it may
not be wrong to say that using advertising in this process would help Westfield-Stratford City to reach
out to a large number of customers and also fulfil their demands or expectations to a great extent.
Therefore it may not be wrong to say that the company can target its customers much easily by
undertaking this activity and thus make its promotional strategy successful. Furthermore, advertising
helps in developing an image of firm in the market with the help of which promotional activities can be
carried out much easily and effectively (Sriram and Kalwani, 2007). Thus herein it can be said that
advertising has a very crucial role to play in the process of promoting firms' goods and services.
LO 2.2 Using branding to strengthen the business
Branding can be defined as a process through which a unique image of firm can be developed in

the target market. It is a very crucial part of the marketing process, because of reason that it is
important in altering perception of customers and other such stakeholders (HANKE, 2015). By
undertaking the process of branding, management at Westfield-Stratford City can take steps to attract
customers and also create a positive image in the market. In this regard it can be said that branding is
essential for effectively conducting the marketing process. There are certain number of stages that can
be used by management of the organization in order to strengthen the company. One of them is to
develop a logo that would enable customers to recognize the firm from group of other firms in the
market (Donohue, Cevasco and Rosenthal, 2007). Further the marketing strategies can receive extra
support through tools and techniques of branding.
LO 2.3 Creative aspects of advertising
In the process of advertising creativity has a very crucial role to play. This is because of reason
that it helps in conducting the process in an efficient and effective manner. Therefore it may not be
wrong to say that if creativity is not maintained in this process, then there are very less chances that this
system can be made efficient and effective (Varey, 2002). Furthermore, creativity would enable
management of the company to design effective marketing campaigns that eventually will help in
attracting customers in large numbers. This way steps can be taken to ensure that demands of customers
are fulfilled to great extents and also that they are happy and satisfied with the company. Essentially
there are three major aspects of creativity – creative process; creative person and creative situation. It
is essential that a creative individual is undertaking this work and that a creative process is used. This
way creativity can be easily included in the process of advertising with the help of which ads that may
be helpful in attracting customers in large numbers (Steenkamp and et. al, 2005).
LO 2.4 Ways of working with advertising agencies
It is very important to work with different advertising agencies so as to ensure that the task of
advertising is carried out in an efficient and effective manner. In this sense it can be said that by
working in collaboration with different advertising agencies, the process of developing an effective ad
can be carried out much easily and effectively (Fill, Hughes and Francesco, 2013). One way to do so is
to understand the ways in which such advertising agencies work. This would help in gaining thorough
understanding about approaches to work in collaboration with advertising agencies and ensure that
marketing related goals are met.
Another method of performing such a task is through Cross Team Collaboration. If the
management at Westfield-Stratford City need to work with advertising agencies then they would have
to form teams with them, that would allow both the entities to work effectively with one another

(Koehler, 2015). Setting timelines can be another effective approach that may prove to be helpful in
working with advertising agencies. This way the company as well as the agency can understand
requirements of one another and then determine ways through which the same can be fulfilled during a
stipulated time period.
M1
In-house advertisement is used to handle by internal staff of the organization and it is called in
house promotional team of Westfield-Stratford. Working method of it has different from external
agency. Internal agency has aware about the objectives of the organisation but external agency increase
the cost of ads and promotion as compare to internal company team. Therefore, in-house agency is
more effective as compare to external agency.
D3. One page flayer of Westfield complex and its most popular stores
Attached at the end of the report; Appendix 1
D2. Time Frame for Promotional plan (Gantt chart)
Activities/ Time Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5
Analysis of the situation
Targeting market
Identifying needs and requirements of
customers
Deciding marketing budget
Selecting media channel
CONCLUSION
Advertising and promotions have a very crucial role to play in working of companies,
regardless of marketplace they may be a part of. During the course of present study it was observed that
for an organization such as Westfield-Stratford City, communication process holds significant
importance. This is so because of reason that it helps in conducting the advertising and promotional
process effectively and also ensure that organizational goals in terms of marketing are attained.

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APPENDIX 1
Illustration 1: One page flyer